Stirring the pot in Lebanon

Pro-Syrian demonstrators gathered in Beirut on Tuesday to denounce what they see as Western interference in Lebanon at a rally highlighting deep divisions in the country over Damascus's role.

The gathering, called by the Shi'ite Muslim Hizbollah group and its allies, is expected to attract tens of thousands of people to a central Beirut square only 300 meters from where opposition protesters, largely Christian, have held daily rallies to demand a complete Syrian withdrawal form Lebanon.

Hizbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah had said the rally would be held to thank Syria for what he calls its sacrifices in Lebanon and to oppose a U.N. resolution demanding the disarming of militias. Shi'ites are Lebanon's largest religious sect.

Hizbollah, which began as a small guerrilla force devoted to ending Israeli occupation in the south, has developed into a sophisticated group with political, military and welfare bodies. It has several MPs in parliament and runs several charities.

The United States considers it a terrorist organization.
  Reuters article

Of course we do. And that is why the whole idea of this group protesting near the opposing ("good") group is a recipe for disaster, which I'm sure will serve us quite well.

Under the agreement by Assad and Lahoud, Syrian troops will complete their move to eastern Lebanon by March 31. The Syrian and Lebanese militaries will then decide how long the troops should stay in the eastern areas before returning home.

[...]

Syrian troops in a mountain ridge east of Beirut continued preparations to pullback from their posts, a day after Syria promised to redeploy its troops to eastern Lebanon this month under a two-stage withdrawal.

The United States has dismissed the plan for failing to set a deadline for a full pullout.

Always with the intereference.

Hizbollah (Party of God) warned of mayhem if Syrian troops were to leave Lebanon, where the 1975-90 civil war ended with a fragile balance between the country's diverse main religious groups. Lebanon is due to hold a general election by May.

Set up by Iran's Revolutionary Guard in 1982, Hizbollah is the only Lebanese faction to keep its guns. It won wide popularity after helping drive Israeli troops from southern Lebanon in 2000.

Syrian forces are credited with helping ending the civil war that tore Lebanon apart. Christian, Muslim and Druze militias fought each other in rounds of sectarian and inter-sectarian fighting. About 150,000 people were believed to have died.

Syria's role in Lebanon has come under fierce fire since a Feb. 14 bomb killed former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri.

And there is your clue to what's going on. The U.S. and Israel immediately blamed Syria for the killing - a killing which was calculated to start exactly this kind of disturbance.

[Outgoing Prime Minister Omar] Karami, a staunch pro-Syrian politician, submitted the resignation of his cabinet on Feb. 28 under pressure from the opposition and street protests.

[...]

Lebanon's Lahoud was set to hold consultations on Wednesday with parliament before naming a new prime minister-designate. Political sources said [...] Karami appeared favorite to be asked to form a new government.